Favorite Tool in the Shop: XTool S1 Laser Engraver

April 24, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

If I were to start fresh with an empty shop, what would be the first tool I would get? Well, while I'd be tempted to say tablesaw (is there a more practical tool?), I think I would actually get a laser engraver to start with. For the past year now we've been working quite a bit with laser engraving and cutting, and it's such a useful tool for making small and precise things. Especially boxes, gears, models not to mention marking out different things. It's fast, fun and opens up a new world of possibilities.

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DIY Wireless Alert Boxes (with plans + parts)

April 13, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

You push a button on a box in one location, and it activates a light and a buzzer in another. This is done over wifi, so you can place the boxes wherever you need them within that range. Where do you place them? One could be in your house, and the other in your workshop (so family members could contact you when needed), you can put them in different rooms of the house… there are lots of options.

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Cheap & Efficient Garden Boxes

March 24, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

It's time to start thinking of garden projects! A raised garden bed is a great one since it brings the planting up (you don’t have to sit on the ground), you can control the quality of the soil, and it also looks really nice and can work as a divider in your garden.

For this project, we're going to go cheap and basic and resaw some 2x4s. I'm going to be using pressure treated wood which I will paint because it's what I had on hand, however you could just as easily use framing lumber.

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Restoring an Old Metal Vise

March 17, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

When we first moved into this house, the space where my current small workshop is located was originally a little garden shed. The previous owners left behind a bunch of stuff, most of which wasn't worth saving, howeover there was one thing which I kept: an old metal vise.

I figured it would come in handy and one day.... I would clean it up and restore it a bit. Ever since, it's been sitting on the counter, I've used it a few times, however it was quite grimy and dirty and could definitely use a good cleaning.

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Tiny Keepsake box with Two Bamboo Hinges

March 04, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

After last week’s exploration with wood hinges, a couple of people suggested to me that instead of using wood dowels or metal nails, bamboo skewers might make a good substitute when it came to the pin that moves the hinge. And why not! Bamboo skewers are pretty hard and durable and quite thin too.

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Making Wooden Hinge Boxes

February 25, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

I always thought that traditional wooden boxes with metal hinges and other hardware are practical, but a little boring. Boxes that you can make on the other hand where the design itself limits hinges, clasps etc... are a bit more interesting. I'm talking sliding dado lids, fitted lids that sit on top, or wedge designs like a Japanese toolbox. None of these boxes require any external hardware, everything you need to complete the project is within the wood.

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New Wood Lathe + Building a Stand (cutlist)

February 18, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

We recently got a new addition to the workshop - a Grizzly G0844 woodturning lathe. The main reason why I wanted to get a lathe was to make the step of sanding and finishing our spinning tops a little more efficient. The spinning tops are cut on the rotary attachment on our Avid CNC machine, and while the CNC is great for a lot of different jobs, sanding and finishing is not one of them!

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Making a Mini Japanese Toolbox (out of 2x4s)

February 09, 2024 / Darbin Orvar

I was in the mood to get out in the shop and build something simple. For a while I'd been thinking it would be fun to dust off the hand tools and I happened to have some resawed 2x4s on hand. 2x4s obviously aren't fancy, however there is something appealing about the cleanness of the wood and the straightness of the grain. In terms of the project, there's been one type of box I've been wanting to make lately, so this seemed like a perfect opportunity - a mini Japanese toolbox.

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Making Spinning Tops

December 03, 2023 / Darbin Orvar

The spinning top journey has been a fun one! They are now stocked in the shoppe if you’d like to pick one up, and I have a video ready all about the process thus far. When we first started playing around with the idea of making the tops, the project was centered around just that. Making different designs, cutting in different woods etc… Since then, we’ve tried out a lot of different concepts, ventured into making dishes and perfectly sized keepsake boxes,

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Making Classic Wax Pots

November 15, 2023 / Darbin Orvar

Some projects or concepts just speak to you right away. The wax pot was one of those for me If you’re not familiar, a wax pot (aka a greasepot) is an old fashioned object that the woodworker kept on the bench or in their apron. It’s a small wooden box filled with some sort of lubricant - either wax polish or tallow.

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A Small Table Out of Flooring

October 15, 2023 / Darbin Orvar

Are you the type of person who sometimes have projects laying around for a long time, mid way through finished? Well, I certainly am. Sometimes projects go by real fast and sometimes you get distracted, or other things take priority.

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A Very Custom Leather and Wood Case for Coffee Equipment

September 15, 2023 / Darbin Orvar

If you like coffee, and the process of making coffee, then you may appreciate the opportunity of being able to set up a brewing station in different places. In other words, the ability to take out your fancy coffee equipment and set up camp whether at a park or a winery or just in the backyard.

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Spinning Tops: The Beginning

September 09, 2023 / Darbin Orvar

So for the last couple of weeks, I've been working on a concept that started out quite simple, and has evolved from there into many different aspects. What is it? It's a spinning top. You know the classic toy that kids have played with for ages (quite a few adults too I may add.) It's been a rather fun object to work on, and I'm not done yet. But, let me share what's been going on with this project and where I am right now.

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categories / Product Testing
tags / cnc, spinning top, wood turning, testing

YouTube Livestreams

March 12, 2023 / Darbin Orvar

Lately I've been getting into hosting livestreams on YouTube about different maker-related subjects. It's been a fun opportunity to connect with people and to explore ideas and projects in a more relaxed way.

Here are the latest ones:

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SUNJOY Gazebos, Pergolas & Outdoor furniture 13% off with Discount Code "DARBINORVAR"

March 12, 2023 / Darbin Orvar

It's almost spring and summer and high time to start thinking about your outdoor spaces. While building a pergola or gazebo can be a fun project (I've done it! You can do it!), sometimes, you really just want to pick something up that makes life a little easier and where you just have to do some assembling.

If you're thinking about buying a gazebo, pergola, canopy or really any other outdoor furniture or structures, then I just wanted to share that I have a great discount code for ALL Sunjoy products (this code is valid on all non-sale items). The code is "DARBINORVAR" and will give a 13% discount!

I'm going to put up my own SUNJOY wood and metal gazebo in a couple of weeks, but I just wanted to share the discount code ahead of time, in case anyone else is getting started on their spring planning.

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Queen Bed Cut List

May 02, 2017 / Darbin Orvar

Cut List

Four Main Boxes

8 - 29x12x0.75 inches (736x304x19mm) - sides

2 - 28.5x12x0.75 (724x304x19mm) - middle

4 - 31.5x12.0.5 (800x304x12mm) - backs

4 - 33x29x0.5 (838x736x12mm) - tops

8 - 15.38x3x0.5 (391x76x12mm) - bracing pieces

Four Drawers

8 - 23x10x0.75 inches (584x254x19mm) - sides

8 - 12.875x10x0.5 (305x254x12mm) - front & back

4 - 15.125x11.25x0.5 (384x286x12mm) - drawer faces

4 - 22.5x13.38x0.25 (578x340x6mm) - bottoms

Front Boxes w/ Basket Area

2 - 29x12.5x0.5 inches (736x317.5x12mm) - tops

4 - 29x12x0.5 (736x304x12) - bottoms & back

2 - 12x11.5x0.75 (304x279x19) - sides

2 - 11.5x2.2 (292x50x50) - posts

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Wall Organizer

March 11, 2017 / Darbin Orvar

When planning out this project, I really wanted to create the ultimate home office system where various objects had a home, especially my beautiful typewriter, electronics devices, laptop and odds and ends. At the same time I wanted to make the space feel airy and light, so I decided to distribute the various shelves, cubbies etc... on the entire wall. Here are some more in-depth pictures of how it turned out.

The oversized pegboard or dowel board, is definitely one of my favorite pieces!

The cubby unit holds various odds and ends.

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Building an Articulated LED Task Lamp

March 23, 2016 / Darbin Orvar

This project is all about building a useful task lamp with led strip lights that are really easy to work with. In this build I use baltic birch plywood but any wood will be fine. Below are some links to the products I either used to make this project or tools that were very helpful.

Parts Used in this Build

LED Strip Lights - http://amzn.to/1Ubz6BC
Remote Control - http://amzn.to/1nuiQ1F
12v Power Supply - http://amzn.to/1M4Y8Md
Soldering Iron - http://amzn.to/1TIpUWV
Variable Power Supply - http://amzn.to/1UbzMHc
Plexiglass - http://amzn.to/22GeDI2
Plywood - http://amzn.to/1VFWSqy
Lamp Magnets - http://amzn.to/1VFX88P
6 - 2 inch 1/4" bolts
12 - 1/4" flat washers
12 - 1/4" lock washers
6 - 1/4" wing nuts

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Ultimate DIY Small Parts Organization Caddy

January 19, 2016 / Darbin Orvar

Desktop Organizer - Parts Used (Affiliate Links)

Dewalt Table Saw - http://amzn.to/1PC1Iy7 (This is the model I use)
Dewalt 611 Router - http://amzn.to/23aS27S
23 Gauge Pin Nailer - http://amzn.to/1PC1yH8
De-Waxed Shellac - http://amzn.to/1PC1BTk
Water-Based Poly - http://amzn.to/1PmCzqT

Cut List

Using 1/2" MDF
1 @ 25" x 37" - Base
2 @ 7 1/2" x 8" - Sides
2 @ 36 1/2 x 8" - Shelves
1 @ 3/4" x 36" - Top Railing
2 @ 3/4" x 8" - Side Railings
2 @ 3/4" x 17" - Base Stops
2 @ 3" x 8" - Bottom Supports

Using 1/4" MDF
18 @ 2 1/4" x 8" - Cubbie Dividers
20 @ 2 3/4" x 7 1/2" - Drawer Bottoms
40 @ 1 7/8" x 7 1/2" - Drawer Sides
40 @ 1 7/8" x 3 1/4" - Drawer Fronts & Backs
1 @ 37" x 8 3/4" - Back of Organizer

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How To Make a Dimmer for a Light Fixture w/ High-Powered LEDs

January 13, 2016 / Darbin Orvar

With the following parts, including some aluminium and walnut I made an LED lighting fixture with a PWM dimmer switch.

The code at the bottom will run on any arduino, although I used a 5 volt Adafruit trinket running at 8 mhz to control the switching on the transistor.

LED Lighting Fixture Parts - (Affiliate Links)

Adafruit Trinket - http://amzn.to/1UPAyYx
LEDs - http://amzn.to/1KdHh91
Voltage Booster - http://amzn.to/1UPAkR2
Pigtail Connectors - http://amzn.to/1KdHwAU
Heat Sinks - http://amzn.to/1UPAp7k
Thermal Adhesive - http://amzn.to/1KdHAAH
AC/DC Adapter - http://amzn.to/1UPACYb
Circuit Board - http://amzn.to/1UPAR5z
Tip31 Transistor - http://amzn.to/1Rm84aS

Arduino-Based Dimmer Code for the Light

const byte potIn = 2; // reads the value from the potentiometer
const byte ledOut = 0; // assigns the output to pin #0 on the trinket
int potValue; 
int ledValue;
 
void setup() {
pinMode(ledOut, OUTPUT);
}
 
void loop() {
potValue = analogRead(potIn); // reads value of the potentiometer
ledValue = map(potValue, 0, 1024, 0, 255); // assigns a number relative to the voltage output
analogWrite(ledOut, ledValue); // outputs a voltage number to the led
}

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